Shrews
In Redwall
- Alignment: Good
- Nicknames: None
- Appearance: Shrews are very small in comparison to other creatures.
They are bipedal and wear rough clothing, and often bright-colored headbands.
They tend to be somewhat stocky and muscular and are normally seen carrying
rapiers, though dirks and slings are also seen.
- Diet: Shrews eat whatever other goodbeasts eat, though they
specialize in a food called "shrewcake," which is a sort of sweet
cake with honey on it.
- Habitat: Most shrews live near the water, which they travel on in
small, fast boats. Most live near running water.
- Typical Personality: Shrews are fierce warriors despite their small
stature, though they tend to fight in large groups- they aren't too good at
one-on-one fighting. They have an intense pride that they're quick to
defend with violence. Shrew wives are often described as shrewish
[pardon the pun] - nagging and dominating. Shrews are infamous for being argumentative!
- Habits: Shrews sometimes don't have an accent and sometimes
do. When they do, it's only slight. Their only species-wide
habit seems to be their tendency to boat on running water.
Outside Redwall
- Classification: Order: Insectivora; Family: Soricidae; Species: Neomys
fodiens
- Other Names: Eurasian water shrew; water shrew
- Appearance: The Eurasian water shrew has dark colored fur with a
white underside. Teeth have red tips, and there are bristles along the
tail and paws which are thought to help with swimming.
- Diet: Water shrews get all their food almost entirely
underwater. They eat aquatic invertebrates such as snails, mollusks,
freshwater insects, and also small vertebrates such as fish, amphibians and
frogs. Shrew saliva is slightly venomous, but deadly to the creatures
it hunts.
- Habitat: Water shrews are commonly found on the banks of both
standing or flowing fresh water and adjacent areas. They make burrows
in the shore.
- Typical Personality: Shrews are solitary, and will fight other
shrews if put together in captivity. They normally avoid each other
but will fight each other if one intrudes on another's territory.
- Habits: Shrews can stay underwater for up to 20 seconds - a long
time for their lung capacity - and are excellent swimmers. After
coming onto land, water shrews quickly run into their burrows and emerge a
moment later almost dry, after coming through the tight squeeze of the
tunnel where the water is absorbed by the soil. They are active both
at night and in the day.
- Life Cycle: Water shrews breed between April and September, and
have more than one litter of 3 - 12 (usually 5 or 6) young per
season.
- Sites for Further Research: